3-Page Jumpstart: How to Create a Waste Inventory

The first step in any waste minimization program should be to perform a Waste Inventory... the foundation of any waste minimization planning.

What a Waste Inventory does:

Gives you visibility on your most significant wastestreams

Puts measurements behind those wastestreams (so you can accurately calculate savings and set priorities in the next step)

Eliminates guessing. You have good numbers you can use to get management buy-in for your program.

Provides a clear, easy to read format for sharing internally or sending to recycling vendors to get bids.

Without segregating and measuring wastes, there is no way for a facility to know what potential scrap values might be, or what each waste currently costs in terms of disposal. An Inventory gives you all of the measurements you need to be able to go to management with conviction as to how much a waste minimization effort can save your facility every year.

Attached below is a "3-Page Jumpstart" on how to get started on a Waste Inventory and what you'll need to do.